


Red String

by AstrumVita



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Best Friends, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Pining, Red String of Fate, star crossed lovers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-26
Updated: 2020-12-02
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:35:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,648
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27212785
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AstrumVita/pseuds/AstrumVita
Summary: There's a Chinese proverb that says that a red string of fate connects those that are supposed to meet at some point in their lives. It is said that these two people connected by the thin red string are destined lovers. Their bit of fate might get tangled and stretched and beaten but it will never break. Through circumstances and time, fate will see them together in the end.Naruto/OC
Relationships: Uzumaki Naruto/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 12





	1. Six Years Old

* * *

**Chapter One**  
**Chance Meetings**

" _There's nowhere you can be that isn't where you're meant to be..._ "  
― John Lennon

* * *

**.I.**

Trees swayed with the wind as a young girl walked down a dirt path. Planted on both sides of the walkway were rows of trees, their branches reaching over the path and intertwining with the opposite side. The canopy of branches helped those who walked underneath them, serving to both shield them from the sun's rays during summer while simultaneously offering a cool shade for those who choose to rest under one of the many trees. Dry, dark brown brittle leaves littered the path, shaken off from their branches due to the unusual windy October day.

With the exception of an elderly couple far up ahead, Amaya Saito had the whole road to herself. Had it been like any other day, the road would had been more populated than it was this late afternoon. Last she checked before she left home, it was already a quarter past five. People would had already left home to either claim an empty spot in Central Park or be amidst in the food and game stalls. The real event wouldn't take place until the sky turned dark so until then, people would mingle around and enjoy the festivities until the big event. For those who arrived much later, such as herself, they where more likely interested in the stalls and the sky event than sitting on the grass.

The six year old girl purposely stepped on each of the dead leaves, delighted by the sound of the crunch her feet made when she stomped upon them. Her friend's home wasn't far from where she lived if she stuck to the road she was walking on. In fact, it was on the opposite end from where she lived, so coming and going was fairly easy on Amaya. She was in no rush to reach her friend's home since she'll be spending the remainder of the day with them, so she took her sweet time between kicking up the dead leaves or stepping on them.

This had been the day Amaya had been looking forward to, the day she kept reminding her mother before she left for work early in the morning since last week. Not only had she reminded her about the festival itself, but asked her mother if she could stay with her instead of going to work on that day. It was the day that most of Konoha's citizens spent it in Central Park. While the park itself was a great place to meet up or spend time with family and friends, it also served as the center where the one-night festival took place. The outskirts of the park served as the location where food and game stalls were set up, while in the grassy area served as a location where people would picnic and wait until night came for the fireworks to begin, the big event that marked the end of this special day.

So while she had been looking forward to this event, she was disappointed that her mother wouldn't be able to join her. Even though she would be spending it with her good friend, Ichika, she would had preferred to have spent it with her mother instead. Just as much as Amaya had reminded her mother about the festival, she also kept asking her not to work on that day. She couldn't remember the last time she had spent a festival with her instead of working, so Amaya really hoped she would be able to this time around. Unfortunately, her mother gave her the bad news that she wouldn't be able to miss work since she had been assigned to work on this special day.

Amaya had hoped today would had been different and thought her mother had promised to make it up for it by spending it with her on her next day off, she knew it wouldn't be the same. She knew her mother worked a lot, only having a single day off from the week to spend it with her, and usually those were the days when her mother was busy with the house or an important task. Her father was nonexistent and she had no real family in the village other than her mother. Because of it, Amaya was mostly on her own. She tried to help with housework and whatever else she could, but mostly often than not, she was alone in the small apartment they lived in. Once in a while, her mother would bring dinner from the restaurant she worked at and at other times, she would had left food for her so all she had to do was reheat it.

Today had been no exception, she had left her breakfast and a note telling her to reheat last night's dinner for lunch. Along with it, as a consolidation, there was money left for her to spend on the festival. She knew her mother worked hard for it, so Amaya was grateful that she had left a little something for her to spend at the festival.

* * *

. **II.**

There was no way for Amaya to know what time it was, but she knew the time for the fireworks was coming. The crowds around the stalls were slowly thinning out, some taking their time stopping at one stall or another and others hurrying past them, surely trying to find a good spot that hasn't been claimed yet. Other kids she knew and didn't know ran past her, some of them being over rambunctious and others trailing after adults. Most often than not, she would catch whisks of different conversations. Ranging from the upcoming fireworks to whatever happened six years ago.

The young girl stood next to the entrance in one of the many food stall as she continuously watched people walk by. Her hands grasping the two metals poles that made the entrance to the stall. She knew the time was coming where she would have to take a leave if she did not want to miss the fireworks. She was not worried about finding a spot since she excused herself from Ichika's family, who already had a good spot, to pay her mother a quick visit. Looking over her shoulder, she looked at her mother wearing a dark blue robe, her sleeves folded and wearing a white apron tied around her neck. Though her hair was pinned up high in her head, she still wore a white bandana over it. She could tell her mother was preparing an order of dango for a customer who was standing on the opposite side of the counter.

There were plenty of stalls around her, a combination of food and games; most of them came from outside of the village, nearby villagers wanting to share their wares or food. Then there were the locals which her mother was part of — preparing dango's and other popular foods for the festival. Normally, she would had been working in one of the restaurants on the other side of the village, so it was expected she would be working as an extension to the original restaurant.

"Ah, little ladybird, you're still here?!" A familiar hoarse voiced called out.

Amaya turned to the one who called her by a familiar nickname, Mr. Sato. He was much older than her mother, his gray hair almost covering his whole head, even so, he still worked alongside her much younger mother. "You should go, you'll miss the show!"

The young girl knew Mr. Sato was correct. If she were to stay here, she would not be able to see the fireworks clearly from here.

"Amaya, wait, come here," her mother soft voice called to her with a wave.

The young girl walked into the stall, followed by Mr. Sato who patted her head as he walked past her. "Why don't you let Mr. Sato stay here and come watch it with me?" Amaya said matter of factly since she knew Mr Sato just came from his break.

Both her mother and Mr Sato chuckled at her suggestion — whether by the suggestion itself or something else entirely she did not know, but she did not like being left out of a joke.

"If I could, I would but knowing Mr. Han, he would likely stroll by..." her mother trailed as she worked over something on the counter. "Remember, we'll have tomorrow for ourselves."

Amaya pursed her lips in the same instant her mother looked over her shoulder, giving her one of those smiles that Amaya loved seeing from her mother. While her mother was all about love, these smiles of hers were the best. They alleviated her feelings and she gave her a curt nod at her mother's response.

"Little ladybird, you must get going or you'll miss the fun," Mr Sato commented as he started rolling up his blue sleeves.

"Before you go, take these with you," her mother asked as she turned around holding a small plate with two freshly made skewered dango's. The amber colored glazed syrup still spreading across the five small white doughy balls. "It's my treat! You can share one with Ichika."

"Oh? Really? Aww!" Amaya exclaimed excitedly as she reached out to pick up the container her mother was handing over. "Thank you, mama!"

"Of course, now go run and join Ichika so you don't miss the show!" Her mother rushed as she led her daughter out from the stall. "I'lll see you when I get home, okay?"

Amaya quickly turned and gave her mother a side hug with her free arm around her legs, careful as not to drop her plate of dango's. "I'll wait up until you get home!"

Her mother smiled and gave her a curt nod.

As much as Amaya enjoyed spending her time with her mother, she also enjoyed spending it with Ichika's family. One day out of the week she would have dinner with them, approved by her mother of course, and if there was an opportunity where she could spend her day with, she would join along. Unlike her, Ichika had both parents and an older brother but the differences didn't end there. Ichika's mother didn't work and her father was a Shinobi. The only similarity she had with her friend was that she was also a girl of the same age, so both girls saw themselves as not only best friends but sisters as well. Where one went, the other came along and that was usually Amaya who did the following.

Because of this, she was also joining the Academy next month.

Ichika was taking after her father and brother — one who was already a respected ninja and the other who was already a Genin. As far as Amaya knew, none of her ancestors were shinobi, so she wanted to prove and honor them by becoming the first one in her line of family.

* * *

**.III.**

Amaya was certain the park itself wasn't called Central Park, but it did made sense to call it so considering where it was located. The large green, field was the largest of the parks that were located within the village . With trees surrounding it and different roads connecting from it to the rest of the village, you could literally go to any district from the center. From it, you could also see the Hokage rock, the four stone faces carved out from the side mountains that shielded a side of the Leaf Village. From somewhere behind it, the fireworks were set off to shoot into the skies illuminating everything underneath it but to get the best view, Central Park was your best choice.

Surrounding the green clearing where the many stalls that were set up for this festival, so while it was easy to move around them to reach the center, there was the question of avoiding the crowds that were coming and going. Then there was that obvious fact that the field was also crowded with people, lounging and waiting for the fireworks to begin. Had she not been with Ichika, Amaya would had a hard time finding her and her family amongst the crowd. Even so, she still needed to walk amongst the throngs of people to get to their location. To avoid the crowds, she decided to walk through the trees that formed around the open clearing. It was sparse with people who opted to stand amongst the trees instead of searching for an open spot to sit on. While not a preferential location to see the fireworks due to the tree branches shielding the skies, this fact did not stop people from standing underneath them.

Amaya continued walking down the main path until she came upon a building that signaled she should start a new path amongst the trees, this would then open to what would normally been an open field. Still firmly holding her plate of dango's, she stepped into the grassy area that would soon lead her towards Ichika's family. It was as she was nearing the last trees before stepping into the field that she saw a boy standing between two trees. A soft orange glow surrounded the boy as he stood underneath one of the many sparsely lit lampposts that surrounded the park.

She couldn't tell who the boy was since he had his back towards her, clearly overlooking into the crowd of people who were seated in the field. Amaya could only guess he had lost the sight of his family if he was standing there without going forward. Keeping an eye on him, she made her way forward. It was as she got closer that she picked out his blonde hair and shabby looking clothes that made her stop on her tracks. She was close enough to realize who he was and when she realized this, the young boy turned to look at her seeming to sense her presence and her eyes widen in surprised.

Amaya only knew him as The Boy as that's how he was referred to whenever she had seen him around. She was pretty sure that wasn't his real name and she didn't quite understand why people didn't call him by his real one. Not only did the adults seem to avoid calling him by his name, but they also seemed to not want to be around him either. The little she had seen, they acted as if he was some walking plague that was scorn at or avoided in general. But this didn't only apply to the adults because Ichika and most of the kids also avoided him. She had remembered asking her once why and her only response mimic other kid's answers "he's weird."

Now that she stood across from him, he didn't look as strange as everyone made him out to be. In fact, any time she seen him, he was always by himself. Either overlooking the rest of the kids playing or standing on the side in a populated area, either being ignored or steered away from. She found that particularly sad.

"What's your name?" Amaya asked him as she carefully stepped closer.

The blonde haired boy blinked, "you don't know?"

The young girl shook her head, "I know you can't be just 'The Boy'."

"No, it's Naruto. Uzumaki Naruto."

The name was rather bland, nothing peculiar to cause the adults to avoid calling him by his name. "I'm Amaya. Saito Amaya."

The boy known as Naruto opened his mouth as if he were to speak but quickly closed it only to quickly blurt out a greeting. It was Amaya's turned to blink, her mouth formed into an *oh*. He was pretty normal to her, why did people avoided him? Instead of asking the question, she asked the obvious one. "You'll barely see the fireworks from here,"

"It's okay," the boy said quietly as he looked out into the crowded field. "I'll see it fine here."

"No you won't," Amaya pointed as she walked up to his side, she could see the crowded field better from here. Looking up, she could see part of the sky. "You don't like fireworks?"

"What? I do," Naruto responded as he joined her looking up to the partially covered sky. "I like it because it's like an early birthday present." Amaya looked at him, he turned to look back at her with what appeared to be a small smile, "not everyone gets to have fireworks, nehh?"

"Oh, you're right," she answered thoughtfully as she turned to her plate of dango's. "Well, in that case..." she put out the plate towards him. Naruto looked down at the treat before he looked to her, his right eyebrow raised in question. "Happy early Birthday, Naruto. Take one!" Amaya said with a broad smile.

While she had no idea why everyone treated him the way they did, Amaya was happy to do something good for the lonesome boy. While she intentionally meant the second dango for Ichika, she could easily give her share to her friend.

Naruto looked a bit taken a back, his eyes widen in surprised "a-are you sure?"

Amaya gave him a sharp nod, "of course, or why would I be giving one to you?"

The boy relaxed a bit in front of her before he gave her a smile of his own, "thank you!"

Amaya smiled as she watched him pick out a skewered dango from her plate.

The Boy in the end had a name and he was nothing like everyone made him out to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not gonna lie, I found it a bit hard going back to writing In 3rd person after focusing on POVs fics, but writing this was quite refreshing! Definitely gives me more leeway to writing a story! As you have noticed, this chapter was divided into what I like to consider as 'mini chapters' — dedicated to different scenes. This is how my story will be written for the next nine chapters. Yes, I've written out the whole outline for this story and what each chapter will consist of. Heck, there's even a potential sequel for it but I don't really want to get ahead of myself just yet x)
> 
> Thank you for reading!


	2. Twelve Years Old

**Chapter Two**

_A true friend never gets in your way unless you happen to be going down._  
– Arnold H. Glasgow

* * *

**.I.**

Stars lit up against a backdrop of the night sky, their twinkles appearing to be in-sync to the twelve year old girl who looked upon them. With her arms propped underneath her head, Amaya keenly observed the sky above; the moon was not in sight tonight, but that was fine with her. Other than very few people crisscrossing across the green field of the park, seeming to avoid going around the beaten path, it felt to her as she was the sole owner of this patch of land. With a deep sigh, the dark eyed girl closed her eyes with a slight smile etched upon her lips.

They agreed to meet at the park at their usual spot early in the evening and considering it was the last day that Naruto would pay his due for that one prank that got the whole village talking, there was a _small_ possibility that he would not be arriving on time. She considered herself punctual, either arriving earlier than expected or on time but a quick errand had pushed her punctuality to the side. A quarter after eight, she arrived at their spot and with no sign of him, she was glad she wasn't officially late; granted, the park was sparse with people and the night was obviously taking over but that did not deter her from waiting him out. Of all the places the two of them had ventured throughout the village, they had come to an unspoken agreement that Central Park was their spot. Not only was it a short distance from their respective homes, but they acknowledged it as 'their place' in reference to when they first met.

Despite her mother working at the same pace as she had when she was younger, she had not opposed her budding friendship with Naruto despite being that busy . Whether it was because she was too preoccupied and felt guilty for not being around her, Amaya did not know but it all worked out well in the end. Her mother wasn't like the other adults who scorned at The Boy prior to befriending him, in fact, she was one of the few people who didn't mind having Naruto around. This was evident when Amaya self-invited him over for dinner one day and while her mother was surprised, she still placed out a third plate for him. It was safe to say her mother had accepted him. From the moment Amaya had met him that night, she had been intrigued by him. She had never met someone who, despite being treated unfairly, still remained optimistic about life. She liked to believe her mother saw that as well, therefore approving their friendship.

Outside her home, it looked like the adults didn't much care for them — with the exception of a very few who would throw her a weird expression. It was her fellow peers who she had to deal with. Ichika was and is still a good friend but it was apparent at the beginning she had not approved of her hanging out with Naruto. Whenever she was with her and Naruto joined — usually Amaya being the one who invited him over —, Ichika would leave for one made up reason or another. As for the rest, it was as if she was guilty by association — whatever that was. Because of this, her play dates with the others slowly ceased to be. While it saddened her that her circle of friends was shrinking, she didn't let it bother her too much. This only enforced her bond with her newfound friend, Naruto, to grow. As the "odd girl out" from the beginning — the child of a single mother, father unknown and a mother who was always working— she was somewhat used to sticking out.

It was as the years progress that, while they both were enrolled in the Academy, their fellow peers started accepting them as the norm. Fortunately, as time passed, the stigma that once followed Naruto in his early years did not follow him. As they both grew older, the discrimination they both experienced disappeared and they were back to being normals. At least that's how Amaya felt — there were some people who disliked Naruto for his rambunctious behavior but it didn't matter to her really, she enjoyed how he was always so spirited and free which was somewhat the opposite of who she was. She considered herself more reserved and ordered, almost the opposite of Naruto. This was probably due as a result of her own upbringing, almost being on her own while her mother was busy with work. So having Naruto around brought out the fun, adventurous side of her that she didn't get to experience with the friendship she had with Ichika.

They had agreed to meet here after his unwarranted detention. Of course, he didn't consider it warranted but that was typical of him. It was after some light teasing on her part, he admitted — reluctantly at least — that it might had not been the best idea but it was worth it. It was definitely worth it considering how expensive his prank turned out to be. Almost a week worth of after school detention of cleaning up his famous art.

_'It took me almost all night to get it done!' He had whined to her after class on his first day of his punishment._

_'You kinda — no, more like you did — give yourself away the next morning though," she had responded with a side smile, 'not only did it look like you didn't sleep last night but your right hand is stained with paint," she pointed as she took his hand palm side up and showed it to him, 'see! Multi colors at that!'_

_Naruto yanked his hand away from her grasp with a loud humph, "fine, I probably didn't think it through."_

_"Cheer up! I'll root for you from the bottom of the mountain!"_

_"You'll really do that Amaya?" Naruto asked with his all-familiar grin as he adjusted his goggles._

_"Of course I would, you dork," she responded with a smile of her own._

_And she had — that first day, she took her homework and found herself a spot where she could visibly see the scaffold. Despite the great height and the plenty of trees, Naruto had said he'd seen her from up above._

Despite the prank being expensive enough to get the whole village talking, it didn't overshadow the one important event in both of their lives: their graduation from the Academy.

The graduation was in two days, which meant that these last couple of days of classes were only being used as a rehash of what they had learned. Thankfully, still being friends with Ichika, she had managed to get an idea on what to really expect, so she really focused on the basics — mastering those so she could show her _teachers_ that she had the determination. While Naruto wanted to become the next Hokage, akin to being the best shinobi, she wanted to be the best medic-nin. Both of them needed to master their own skills to accomplish it and just like Naruto, she was willing to do what was necessary to get it.

"Can I get an applause for doing a good job?!" A familiar and boisterous voice interrupted her thoughts.

She opened her eyes to see her good friend standing a tad too close to her head, "Congrats, you outdid yourself. Not only did you create it, but cleaned up as well!" She teased.

"Hahaha-HA. I'm just glad I won't have to spend another wasted afternoon under Iruka-Sensei watch," Naruto grumbled as he soon joined her on the ground, opposite from where she laid, the top of their heads almost touching the other. "I could had been training for the exam."

"We have tomorrow still, want to study together?" She asked as she looked up at the starry night sky.

"I'm fine," he responded rather calmly, "I just want to relax before the big day."

Amaya quirked an eyebrow, "are you sure? I can help you with your * Bunshin no Jutsu* if you want. I was told that'll be on the exam this year."

"There wasn't one last year, I don't think there'll be one this time."

Last year, he attempted at graduating early — anyone could if they were confident at their skills. While Amaya was *not* at that time, she still rooted for her friend. Unfortunately, at the time, he did not pass but, as was expected, that did not deter him for trying this year.

"I'm excited that we'll both be graduating this year," Amaya mused, "by week's end, we'll probably be having our first mission."

"Yeah! That'll be so cool!"

She couldn't help but smile at his enthusiasm, with a deep sigh, she nodded in agreement.

**.II.**

It was a beautiful day

The sky was bright and clear, the weather wasn't terribly warm — quite comfortable actually. The day itself neatly reflected on the mood of everyone who was surrounding her. Joyous cries of congratulations could be heard all around, kids congratulating their peers and parents congratulating their children. As far as she knew, the exam produced no casualties and that in itself was a very good thing. But most importantly, she was now _officially_ a shinobi! Granted, she was low tier but a shinobi nonetheless! With enough training in the field, she could branch out and focus on the medicinal part of her training but until then, she would be able to get actual hands on training while simultaneously getting paid for it.

With her Hitai-ate already tied across her forehead and her friend, Ichika, walking alongside her, the two girls walked out of the Academy doors into the waiting crowd of parents and families. This was a reminiscence to their first day when the two of them walked into the Academy, their parents watching them go in. And just like it had been six years earlier, the two girls were able to find their respective parents amongst the crowd. Of all the times her mother had missed out due to work, this time around, Amaya found her standing beside Ichika's parents. Excited seeing her, she had quickly ran up to her mother and gave her the biggest hug she could give.

Today was indeed a _beautiful_ day worth remembering.

Between participating in the conversations, responding to peers and acquaintances, Amaya kept looking back towards the entrance of the Academy. She had not seen or heard Naruto and she couldn't help but feel a bit nervous by this. While Naruto was placed in Iruka-sensei's class, the second and last class to take part of the exam, she had a feeling the exams were already done with. Amaya had seen a few of his classmates walking around proudly wearing their Hitai-ate in one form or another, but no sight of her blonde-haired friend. Excusing herself, she went in search of him.

It wasn't until she came across Sakura, Naruto's current crush Amaya had recently learned, that she found out his turn for the exam went before Sakura's. It went without saying that Amaya's heart dropped a little when she heard this. Had he passed, she would had surely known by now... Feeling a sense of urgency, she waded through the crowd. If what she felt was the truth, Amaya knew Naruto wouldn't be around here with the crowd. Had she failed, she would have also wanted to be as far away from the crowd, shamed for not being part of it.

As she was about to leave the Academy grounds, she noticed a familiar orange clad figure sitting in the lone swing a couple of trees away from where she stood . By the sight of him sitting there, his head bowed down and not looking at the crowd of new graduates, Amaya knew he didn't pass.

A sense of apprehension befell on her as she walked up to the lone boy, so deep into his thoughts that he hadn't stirred from his spot to acknowledge her. She understood this strange silence and she felt guilty for it — she had passed and was officially a shinobi while he remained a student. Amaya knew how much he had looked forward to today with their plans to celebrate afterwards with dinner at Ramen Ichiraku. Now, it was... pointless.

"Naruto," she said softly.

The blonde haired boy slowly looked up to her, his half-lidded eyes widen when he noticed her * Hitai-ate* on her forehead. "Amaya, you passed..."

She mentally cursed herself for forgetting about her Hitai-ate. So preoccupied in finding him, she had forgotten to take it off as a friendly gesture and not want it to be a glaring mistake for him, but it was too late — that was the first thing he had seen on her.

Taking a deep breath, she lunged at him with a big hug, "I'm sorry to hear you didn't pass," she whispered into his ear. The sudden movement she had thrown upon him caused his swing to rock back, and instead of swinging forward, she could sense that he had stuck his feet to keep them from tripping over.

Clearly taken by surprise, Naruto still held out his arms awkwardly but soon drop them to his side when she heard him softly chuckling. He placed both hands on her shoulders and gently pulled her away so that the two were now facing one another. She had been around him for so long, she shouldn't had been surprised by what she saw but that still did not stopped her from being it. Instead of the solemn look she had witnessed on him earlier, he held his all-too familiar grin.

"What matters to me is that you passed! I'm happy for you, Amaya! Really!"

The dark haired girl couldn't help but blink, she should had known... they been friends for six years, she should had known this was going to be his reaction but that still did not stop her from feeling such a warm unexplainable feeling for him. "Oh, do you mean that?" She asked him meekly.

"I do, I really do! My best friend became a shinobi!" He exclaimed, his azure colored eyes bright as ever, "I'll do my best now to catch up to you! That's a promise!"

It was her turn to smile, "I'll be rooting for you no matter if I'm far or near, I'll always be there!"

**.III.**

The mood from yesterday, the excitement of the recent graduates, transferred over to the next day. The atmosphere once again was abuzz but unlike yesterday, this time it only came from the recent graduates. Despite the unfortunate circumstance of Naruto not graduating alongside her, the thought of him being happy for her was enough to motivate her out of the guilt she felt for passing.

Unlike the previous years where everyone went to their respective classes, this time all the new graduates met up in the largest room in the building to better accommodate them all. It was no secret why everyone was there as this part was jus the next step into their soon-to-be Shinobi career. So while every one of them were seated, they all waited for it to start. The Academy instructors were the first to arrive, soon followed by a handful of Jonin's — their soon to be Team Leader.

Just as Iruka Sensei was about to start speaking, the unthinkable happened.

Everyone, including Amaya, were excited to find out which team and with whom they would be assigned to when they heard a commotion outside the room. It was a Saturday and normal classes weren't in session, so the noise couldn't had been the result of a random student. It wasn't until the door had opened and Naruto stepped in that a hush fell over the room.

In normal circumstances, no one would care and the class would had continued as usual but this was not a normal situation. Especially for Amaya, who was pretty surprised to see her blonde haired friend standing by the door, a bashful grin plastered on his face as he looked up towards his peers.

"Take a seat, Naruto," Iruka ordered, before he returned back to face the class. "Alright everybody..."

At this point, Amaya couldn't help but stare at him, bewildered to see a familiar * Hitai-ate* on his forehead. It wasn't until Ichika, who was seated beside her, elbowed her side that she turned to face her. "I thought you said he didn't passed?"

"I don't know," she muttered as she tried to catch Naruto's attention without bringing attention to herself. Better said than done — she was practically seated in the middle of the room and she couldn't help but watch him shoot her a wide grin before he walked past her, likely to sit in one of the few remaining seats a couple of rows back from her.

As much as she wanted to know _how_ and _when_ he got his Hitai-ate, she would had to wait until they were adjourned to ask him. Sure, she was excited seeing him here and being part of them, but she needed to know how that happened. It was just yesterday when she had found him in the swing and now here he was, a Genin just like everyone here. Unfortunately, her curiosity would had to wait until the end of the day. It turned out, that once a student was set up with their new teammates, they would spend their day with them. There was to be no breaks until their teams were excused for the day, how early or how late depended on their team leader.

As her friends and other students slowly disappeared and joined their new team, all that were left were a handful of people, including herself and Naruto. For the briefest moment, when Kakashi-Sensei stepped forward as the leader for Team 7 she hoped she would be paired up with Naruto. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. It was as he was leaving to join his team, she quickly told him in passing to meet up afterwards in their usual spot at seven. He acknowledged this with a nod before he ran off to join his team.

Naturally, the last people that remained, including herself, were to be part of Team 8 — their team leader being Kurenai. She was somewhat familiar with her teammates, especially with Hinata Hyūga — more so because of who she was. Amaya was the odd person out considering that the three of them belonged to the same class prior to the graduation, therefore knowing one another. She hoped that in due time, she'll be able to warm up them and vice versa.

**.IV.**

Ramen Ichiraku was surprisingly busy for a Saturday evening but thankfully, Amaya and Naruto found two empty spots near the corner for them to sit in. After a day of welcoming surprises and new beginnings, the both of them looked forward to a delicious ramen dinner. Considering they had originally planned on eating together at Ichiraku as their graduation meal, this time Amaya had offered to pay for Naruto's meal as a simple gift to his surprising graduation.

"So, are you going to tell me what happened? Last time I saw you, you were speaking with Mizuki-sensei." Amaya started after Teuchi had taken their orders.

Despite having met up after being excused from their team leader and walking towards Ichiraku together, Naruto seemed to avoid wanting to talk about how he passed. Now that they were together surrounded by a lively group of patrons, she felt it was the right time to pointly ask the question that's been plaguing her curiosity.

With an awkward grin as he scratched the back of his neck, Naruto turned to face her. "I was given another exam, Iruka-Sensei was there to watch over it. It was not different from the first one, except this one I could do easily!"

Amaya hummed at this revelation, "all this big mystery only to hear it was just an exam, you could had said so at the beginning!"

"Sorry, sorry!" He raised both hands, waving them in an apologetic manner. "I just been thinking about tomorrow. Kakashi-Sensei asked us to meetup at sunrise without eating breakfast, so I'm curious what he'll have us do."

Amaya leaned on the counter, an arm propped against it as she leaned onto her hand, "Oh, he's good. You guys are probably going to have a tough exercise or something if he's warning you beforehand."

"He did say we would puke if we ate something," Naruto mused. "What about you? You have Kurenai, she looks so cool!"

"She didn't say anything but just to meet up, and she's nice too! Though, I do feel a bit left out."

"Huh?" Naruto perked up, more out of concern than curiosity, "what do you mean?"

Amaya pushed herself off from the counter with a sheepish grin, "everyone in my team has a specialty, Hinata with her Byakugan, Shino with his bugs and Kiba with his dog." Despite becoming close throughout the years, there were times where Amaya had a hard time being as open as Naruto was with her. Whether it was due to the location they were in or just the the overall subject, she felt apprehensive talking about it. "I have nothing to offer other than my basic skills like everyone has. Kurenai knows what I want to do and she said she'll be supporting me, but, I don't know."

"Is that it? You're a silly girl!" Naruto said lightheartedly with a fist pump, "this just means you been placed in a skilled group because they know that you'll bring your own! Sure, you don't have it now but wait in a year or so, I believe it!"

Amaya smiled at her friend's enthusiasm. Of course Naruto would find something positive out of a dreadful scenario, but when it came to those he cared about — which still weren't many —, he'd doubled down on supporting them the best he could within his abilities. She had been too focused on what she lacked on, that she hand't seen the potential that was waiting for her.

"Thank you. I hadn't thought of it that way," she smiled softly at him. "You're amazing, you know that?"

Naruto blinked, and it was his turn to turn bashful. Despite him seeking the attention and enjoying the spotlight when it was on him, he still — on rare occasions — would become timid. This moment was one of them.

"Aww, man, real—"

"Sorry about the wait you two, but here's your orders — two miso ramen with extra pork," Teuchi announced as he placed two steaming hot bowls of ramen on the counter, "enjoy it you two!"

And just as expected and with a boyish grin, Naruto reached out for a pair of chopsticks, "let's eat!"

Amaya smiled lingered as she gave him a curt nod and took her own pair of chopsticks.

She was grateful for having a best friend like Naruto.


	3. Sixteen Years Old

_New home, new adventure, new memories_

**-Unknown**

* * *

"You're the most peculiar but _endearing_ sixteen year old that I had ever met," Amaya's mother said loudly, her voice echoing through the empty rooms of their home. "Never did I expect to see the birthday girl choosing to _move_ over spending her day with friends."

The dark haired, ponytailed recently turned sixteen year old huffed as she dropped the last of her belongings in her new empty bedroom. With a sly smile, she shouted back over her shoulder, "it's one of the few days we get to spend it together."

Walking past a row of her belongings that were propped against the wall in one side of the room, all neatly packed with the exception of the last box she walked in with, she stopped and stared out at the bare window. The sun was out and it's natural light immersed her new, partially empty, room. Taking hold of the window pane, she unlocked it and slid it open. A fresh and warm breeze blew in and Amaya sighed. Unlike her mother's new bedroom that faced the front of the house, she had the view of their new backyard. With a wooden tall fence that gave them their privacy from their neighbors, they had their own patch of green lawn to call their own. At the farthest corner of the yard stood a large tree, though the tree's trunk was on their side of the land, its branches also reached over to their neighbors yard.

"It's not too late to back out," her mother called out in response, "I still have a couple days left before going back to work."

"It's fine, I'll meet with Ichika and the others later this evening," Amaya responded as she leaned onto the windowsill. The day was indeed perfection albeit warmer than usual but that was to be expected it being summer.

Sure, it was her birthday and while it was considered to be an important milestone, compared to her accomplished goals, she considered turning sixteen as not much of a big deal but with a good reason. At fourteen, she became a Chūnin alongside a select few of her former classmates. At this time she was immensely involved in performing her civic duties for the village while simultaneously honing on her skills. Considering she bore no special "in-born talent", she made that up by becoming the best she could with what she had. At the time of her turning fifteen, she had already began her medic-nin training alongside with Haruno Sakura and partially under the tutelage of Lady Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage. That in itself was an honor as she was commended by her Team Leader and had shown ' _an immense aptitude with her chakra control_ ' when it came to showing how much she knew prior to becoming Lady Tsunade's student. Because of this, she alternated her time between being a field medic-nin with Team 8 and staying put and putting to practice what she had learned.

Because of this and her want to becoming the best she can be, her downtime was spent mostly staying home and resting with the occasional study here and there. Long gone were her adventurous excursions into the village, the excitement of searching out new spots or the fun challenges she partook in to best herself or that of her best friend. Most of this had stopped once she became a Genin but when her team's downtime coincided with that of Team 7, she enjoyed a different phase of her's and Naruto's friendship. She was no longer as sociable as she used to be and with him gone on his own training with Jiraiya, there was no real distraction in her life. Not that she considered Naruto a distraction, she had thoroughly enjoyed her friendship then and despite all that he had gone through — especially after his big fight with Uchiha Sasuke — he was still as cheerful and optimistic as always.

"Should I order us some lunch then or would you prefer to eat out?"

With her mother's voice sounding much closer, she turned around to see her standing by the doorway into her bedroom. Just as Amaya had grown, both physically and internally, her mother had as well though in her case she was growing older. Fortunately, her age did not slow her down; while still working in the same restaurant, she had accumulated enough to no longer struggle having "ends meet". It also helped that Amaya was also bringing in her own income into their home to lessen the burden on her mother.

With more income coming into the household, the two of them had decided to move out of the apartment Amaya had grown up in and into their very own house. While it was far cheaper to move into a home in the outskirts of the village versus in the district they lived in — which was practically the center of Konoha — they did find a house they liked. After a brief negotiation period, they received their key a week after inquiring about the house. Fortunately for her, her team was on rest for a week after returning from a strenuous mission in the land of lightening . While this meant everyone was on the low, she focused on packing up her belongings and transferring what she could to their new home.

Ironically enough with her job that kept her away from the village most of the time and with her mother still working continuously as she had since forever, their new home practically remained empty for most of the day.

But it was fine, they finally had a place of their own to call home.


	4. Welcome Home

_We might be the master of our own thought,  
_ _still we are the slaves of our own emotions._

— Unknown

* * *

It was a quarter past one when Amaya left the hospital. Carrying nothing but her satchel, she casually made her way back home. As it was the end of September, there was no longer a warm spell but a slight chill in the air — a reminder that the seasons had changed and holidays were coming up. Even so, the sun shone brightly and just as you'd expect in a bustling village, there were plenty of people in the streets and she was in no hurry to get home.

It has been three weeks since Amaya had made the decision of wanting to better focus on her medic-nin training over being a field shinobi. This meant she would no longer be 'in the field' or partaking in duties that required her to leave the village unless ordered to do so. By doing this, she was forgoing the experiences of visiting new countries or helping out in smaller villages. Fortunately though, this was not a permanent situation as she could just as easily switch to a different profession within the Shinobi world if she so wanted it, though that was not a preferential route considering the time that would have been lost but it was not unheard of.

Because of this decision, it was required that Amaya should begin learning "in her field", which basically meant working at the Konoha Hospital with other medic-nin. Her counterpart, Sakura, was already partially working there and considering she had the most in-training with Lady Tsunade, it was a given she was further ahead in her career than Amaya. Fortunately for her, Sakura was keen in helping her along. Due to her availability, her schedule to be at the hospital varied week-by-week but no more than five hours, whether it was through the morning shift or in the evening depending on the subject. This week consisted of morning shifts, mostly spent in the lab as it was her 'classroom' for this week. Studying Toxicology required not only to be aware of natural poisons but as well as those man-made. Thankful for Sakura for lending her personal notebook on the subject, Amaya made good use of it.

It was as she walked past an open alley that she thought she heard the one name she least expected to hear. It had happened so quick but the voice was rambunctiously loud enough for it to have traveled over the empty alley. It wasn't so much as the owner — she had an inkling on who it could have belonged to — but the name that was mentioned.

_Naruto._

Standing at the entrance of the alley, Amaya could see to the other end without much obstruction. Unaware that she was even holding her breath, she slowly exhaled once she saw the familiar trio followed by Sakura crossing on the opposite end.

"He's up there!" One of the kids called out.

Without a second thought, Amaya ran into the alley. _Could it really be him?_ She thought to herself as she reached the other end before turning towards the direction she last saw the group walking towards.

It had been almost four years since she last saw him. They were both twelve when he left with Jiraiya for his training soon after his fight with Sasuke. The night before his big departure, he surprised her by visiting her home for a late dinner which consisted of eating at Ichiraku Ramen for the last time, which soon followed by visiting their old spot and star gazing into the night sky. The following morning, she was one of the very few people who waved him goodbye. Though she was excited for him that he would be training with one of the best, she couldn't help but feel saddened that her best friend was leaving her. As there was no set time that he would return, she only hoped that it would be soon enough. It was a couple days after his departure that she had realized how attached she had become to him. How her life was not quite the same with him not being there and only realizing then how much _he_ really meant to her. Since then, no one else could fill that _spot_ he left in her — it gotten to the point that any time someone mentioned Naruto, her heart curiously skipped a beat. Amaya didn't think much of it at the time, just pitched it as missing her best friend and hoping he was well. So of course she was excited to hear that he was back in the village after being away for so long.

Still standing at the exit of the alley, she noticed the foursome standing not too far off from where she was and surrounding a pole. On top of said pole stood the one person she had missed — Uzumaki Naruto. No one else minded the small group with the exception of the rare few who stopped to look up and see what they were looking at. No sooner did he jumped down and joined Sakura and the small gang and it was clear by his expression that he was excited seeing them. From the distance, she could see how different he had become and all of a sudden, she felt nervous out of the blue.

 _Why am I feeling nervous?_ She questioned as she composed herself. No one else noticed her yet, and by god, she was indeed excited seeing him. With a slight nod to herself, she stepped forward to join the welcome committee.

"Oi, Naruto, you're back!" She greeted him as she dashed up to the group, startling everyone into a silence when she reached up to them. Naruto for the briefest moment stared at her before a flicker of recognition crossed his features. Amaya did not mean to cause a scene but she might as well have based on how everyone seemed to have stopped talking. Honestly, it could had been a minute or two of silence before the conversations resumed but to her it felt longer.

Was she as different to him as he was to her? Sure, she was no longer the small twelve year old kid he last saw waving him goodbye at the entrance into the village. She had grown a couple inches more, her body became more "womanly" and with a bob haircut that almost reached down to her shoulder, she no longer sported the high ponytail she wore when she was younger. Perhaps she _did_ look different to him which would explain the briefest _and_ longest silence between them.

"Amaya! Hey!" He soon shouted exuberantly as he walked up to her.

She tried not to overthink how he twirled her in a large hug, the feeling of him against her. He had definitely gotten much taller, leaner and had gained a muscled quality she couldn't help but feel through his jacket. As she looked into his bright azure eyes, a warmth overcame her. _Home. This felt like returning back home._ Whether it was the moment or his reaction or all of the above, it was at this instant when she began to understand what Hinata must had felt towards him all those years ago.

_Oh…..._

Amaya instantly pushed him away but still held onto him at arm's length. "Welcome back," she quickly said with a wide smile, hoping he hadn't noticed her changed demeanor or the slight blush she felt at the moment.

* * *

**[ Star** ]

_But I know you're the brightest shooting star in the sky_

— Michael Grant

The night sky was exceptionally clear and crisp that even the stars themselves seemed to shine brighter than normal against the dark canvas of the night. The soft babble of the running river nearby added to what Amaya could call 'an exceptionally wonderful night' not counting the slight chill that settled upon her but not enough to have perturbed her. This spot she and Naruto had settled on felt like they were on their own little natural world somewhere outside the village. Surprisingly though, they were _still_ within the village walls. Unlike their "own" Central Park that was practically located in the middle of the village, this location was hidden from the populace. No human traffic or the soft sounds of the night from the village could be heard from here.

This, indeed, was a beautiful night.

"Is it me or does the night sky look and feel different?" Naruto asked from beside her.

While Amaya laid on the ground with her arms laid across her stomach, Naruto had his own arms resting underneath his head. Though there was no moon, the night wasn't completely dark because of it she did not want to stare at him for long and weird him out.

"I've never actually felt the sky, so I woulnd't know," she mused with a slight grin.

"Oh, I forgot how funny you were," Naruto responded cheekily

He didn't take the bait and Amaya couldn't help but grin widely by his response.

It had been a couple of days since his return but it wasn't until tonight where it was just the two of them and coincidentally neither were busy. Unlike his pre-departure where the two of them managed to hang out in their downtime, it felt to her this time around, it would be different.

"Things have changed, hasn't it?" Amaya asked, as she pulled up her legs, laying her sandal feet flat on the grass.

"Well, yeah — we've grown older, trained more, seen the world outside Konoha. Things are different now," Naruto mused. "I might not have been around these last few years but I've heard great things about you!"

She couldn't help but softly smile at this, "nothing as impressive and cool like you."

"Huh, cool? You think I'm cool?"

Amaya turned to look at him and caught him staring at her curiously. His normally azure colored eyes were dark due to the lack of lighting, but even so, she couldn't help but feel a familiar tingle in the pit of her stomach at the way he was looking at her. She shot him a wide smile and said, "Of course, I was there when you and Sakura took on Kakashi! I've been around Sakura in both fields, so I'm familiar with her ways but you — I haven't seen you for three years and you're like, the same but not the _same_. I'm sure no one here has seen you at your one hundred percent but back there with Kakashi? You really outsmarted him with that move, Kakashi of all people! That makes you pretty cool in my book."

"A-ahhh really? You're too nice Amaya!" He responded enthusiastically with a grin, "I've heard you studied under Granny Tsunade and work at the hospital like Sakura. I don't know how you managed her temper, but if you survived training under her, you must have some exciting moves I haven't seen."

"Nothing as exciting as yours, I'm sure. Nowadays I'm stuck inside the hospital and unless you get seriously hurt to warrant a trip to it, then you'll see my ' _cool moves_ '," she chuckled. "Perhaps we sho— _oh_ , did you see th—-"

"The shooting star?" He finished her sentence.

Amaya nodded to herself with a slight smile, "made a wish, hm?"

She heard his slight chuckle, "you're a silly one, Amaya."

This was indeed a beautiful night.

* * *

**[ Mission** ]

_Every person above the ordinary has a certain mission that they are called to fulfill._

— Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Amaya was no stranger visiting the Hokage's office, it was after all the one location she was likely to find Lady Tsunade unless Shizune told her otherwise. It was to be expected that Tsunade would alternate her time in the office and in the field and by field, she meant somewhere in Konoha. Whether in the mist of official paperwork or speaking with one group or another, Amaya was used to the vibe in the office whenever she was required to meet up with her mentor. She treaded carefully when Tsunade was, for a lack of a better word, — sensitive — after dealing with someone or a difficult matter. Amaya was not privy to the official affairs that took place within the Hokage office. Whenever she had business to deal at the office and she happened to see the door closed, Amaya knew she had to wait until whatever official duty was taking place to end before making her presence be known.

Today was a bit different but not all that strange either.

It was to be expected that if a high classified message needed the attention of the Hokage, that would take precedence to whatever meeting was happening prior to receiving said information. It was as Amaya was handing her the paperwork that she completed at the hospital for Tsunade to sign off on, a kunoichi with short but straight brown hair stormed into the room. The woman did not look familiar to her but the expression on both Shizune and Tsunade informed her she was of importance. It wasn't until the woman had her back towards Amaya that she saw the kanji on her clothing.

Something of importance was happening and she took the cue that she had to leave. Shizune met her halfway as she walked with her to the door, leaving Tsunade and the woman to speak amongst themselves.

"I'll make sure she signs those papers so we can get a start on your final exam," she whispered as she stopped at the doorway. With a slight nod from Amaya, she turned and started to descend onto the fourth floor of the building.

It was a quarter past three and Amaya's day was almost over. With no other task to deal with, she decided she would call it a day and spend it at home doing nothing. Well, partially, she still needed to study for the final exam before the last phase of her training was to take place. Once that's taken care off, she would officially become a medic-nin. She was so close to reaching her goal and she was naturally excited for that.

It was as she reached the first floor of the building that she heard her name being called out. Stopping in her tracks and turning towards the source of said voice, she was surprised to see Shizune running towards her. Confused but intrigued, she quickly walked up to meet her.

"What's wrong?"

"Lady Tsunade wants you back in the office and no, it isn't about your papers," she quickly added as she composed herself. Just as Amaya was to inquire on the reason, Shizune held up a hand to stop her. "I cannot say any more, but please meet her in the office. I have to send word for the others," and with that, she hurriedly walked past her towards the front desk.

With not a word exchanged, Amaya had a feeling her day's activity was about to be extended.

**X.x.x.x.x.X**

Amaya had no idea why she was called back into the office, but by the time she arrived, the woman who had rushed in earlier was long gone. Whatever had transpired in her absence had placed Tsunade into a deeply pensive mood as she stared down at an open scroll.

"I'm sending in a team to Sunagakure, you'll be joining along with them to backup the three-person team." Was all she said in regards to her reasoning for being called back in. Amaya knew better than to ask for more information as she would have to wait until the rest of the team arrived. While she was still tied with Team 8, she knew this was not the team she was going with or else Tsunade would had mentioned them. Whoever they were and them needing her only meant this mission was of a serious nature if she was being sent with this mysterious team.

Standing by the window, Amaya didn't have to wait for long once Kakashi, Sakura and Naruto walked into the office. After the briefest salutations ever, as was to be expected in an important case, Tsunade got down to business.

"Which is why your team was called in for this S-rank mission…"

 _So that explained Tsunade's deep concern_ , Amaya thought to herself as she listened on. While Tsunade has not revealed the reason for Amaya's presence just yet, it made sense why she was told she'll be joining them. Even so, she has only been in _one_ S-rank mission and that only happened _before_ she started on her path to medic-nin. Unlike previous low tier missions that still held a possibility of danger, an S-rank mission _guaranteed_ there would be one. She was excited at the prospect of going out on said mission though curious why she was picked out from the more experienced shinobi's in the village.

"—for this reason, Amaya will be joining the team for this mission as well."

Zooming back into the present, Amaya nodded as she glanced at Team 7. With the exception of Kakashi, Naruto and Sakura glanced at her as if noticing her for the first time. Amaya gave them a slight smile in return.

"All right team, we'll be meeting at the gate at twenty." Kakashi started as he stepped forward to take a scroll the Hokage was holding out for him.

...and just like that, Amaya's day suddenly got booked for the next couple of days.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!


End file.
